stopREBNYbullies!

One city under REBNY

"Manhattan: Re "Change the math that's keeping too many NYC storefronts vacant" (Op-Ed, April 16). The rezoning policies of the Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) are behind "manufactured gentrification," or the unnatural process called "hypergentrification on steroids," which has led to the monthly disappearance of thousands of small businesses and local jobs and the bulldozing of communities, viable schools, libraries, hospitals, playgrounds, churches, parks, community gardens and historic buildings. These policies are spurring massive displacement of tenants and are the major factor behind the lack of real affordable housing, the increasing homelessness crisis and record numbers of small-business closures throughout the five boroughs. REBNY, which has been appropriately dubbed the Real Estate Bullies of New York, is able to run roughshod over New Yorkers because the mayor, City Council speaker(s), Economic Development Corp. and city Department of Planning are all shilling for the superwealthy developers, property speculators and landlords at the expense of the 99%. Ray Rogers"